Company

[foxy]

This afternoon I took myself off to spend some time with good Company. Actually very good Company. If you’re a Sondheim fan it’s fun to try to think of a favorite show or score. He wrote some real zingers. Even without the vodka. However Company is filled with some very wonderful songs. How can you not love Patti LuPone doing her version of Ladies Who Lunch? Even Elaine Stritch liked it. I can never help thinking Ms LuPone must think “it’s fun to be me”. So the lead Bobby is now Bobbie, a woman played by Katrina Lenk who was so good in The Band’s Visit. She was good but not as strong as I would have liked in the final number Being Alive. The crowd pleaser Getting Married Today is now sung by a gay man named Jamie played by Matt Doyle. I thought he did a great job although no one, in my opinion, will ever be better than the late, great Madeline Kahn. 
I really liked the constantly changing and very creative set design. I don’t often see a play a second time but might make an exception in this case.

 

[handiacefailure]

Great show.     I saw it in London in 2019 with Patti and saw it Black Friday when I was in NYC and have tickets for next saturday as well.   Going to be interesting at the Tony's this year with two of broadway's biggest Diva's competing for the best actress Tony (I'm sure both Patti and Sutton will get nominated).

I loved when Patti performed Lady's who Lunch at Sondheim's birthday gala and when the camera turned to Elaine wearing a hat when she said "does anyone still wear a hat" LOL    Loved how Elaine hugged her at the end.   The old British show "two's company" with Elaine had a couple comments in it that only company fans would get in an episode.   Elaine's character said I'll drink to that and later in that episode someone mentioned wearing a hat and she said "Does anyone still wear a hat".

When I saw it on Black Friday it was the day Stephen died and the producer of the show said a few words before the show started and Patti spoke for a couple minutes, very moving.

I liked Rosalie Craig better in the role of Bobbie in London than Katrina Leek.   Patti didn't get a standing ovation in the west end after ladies who lunch but did in NYC.   

[Cooper]

Company: This is one of the Broadway musicals  that was opened before the Covid pandemic and has recently reopened. Today, I finally got to see it. I loved it. Plus, its an easy ticket to get at TKTS. 

Both Katrina Lenk and Patti LuPone sang some very powerful Sondheim  songs. Some I had forgotten were in that musical, such as “Barcelona”… The closers,  “The Ladies Who Lunch” and “Being Alive” were  show stopper. Both Patti and Katrina belted them out to a very appreciative audience. As @foxyalready mentioned, the scene with the 2 gay men about to be married was so funny! 

A very likable  and talented cast. I liked that the orchestra was located above the stage. 

Hopefully, more new shows will be opening on Broadway 🎭. 

[rvwnsd]

Thank you all for the reco. Company is one of my all-time favorites. Let's hope it is still open the next time I visit NYC. 🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

Lenk is entirely too weak for this show. 

The West End version was a stronger cast. 

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

On 2/9/2022 at 8:34 PM, handiacefailure said:

Patti didn't get a standing ovation in the west end after ladies who lunch but did in NYC.   

That's because the British don't stand for anyone (and I appreciate that). 

A standing ovation, warranted or not, is what Broadway audiences think they need to do these days. It's ridiculous monkey see, monkey do. 

West End doesn't do that or entrance applause. I respect that. 

[handiacefailure]

18 hours ago, Benjamin_Nicholas said:

That's because the British don't stand for anyone (and I appreciate that). 

A standing ovation, warranted or not, is what Broadway audiences think they need to do these days. It's ridiculous monkey see, monkey do. 

West End doesn't do that or entrance applause. I respect that. 

Company did get a standing ovation at curtain call which was well deserved and agree they do it too often in the US, especially since covid.   Only time I saw curtain calls in London were at Company and surprisingly everybody’s talking about Jamie. 

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

5 hours ago, handiacefailure said:

Company did get a standing ovation at curtain call which was well deserved and agree they do it too often in the US, especially since covid.   Only time I saw curtain calls in London were at Company and surprisingly everybody’s talking about Jamie. 

Great article on this plague.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/automatic-standing-ovations-plague-the-west-end-mnh33jbb2

[+ WilliamM]

10 minutes ago, Benjamin_Nicholas said:

Great article on this plague.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/automatic-standing-ovations-plague-the-west-end-mnh33jbb2

I am annoyed as well,  but have learned to live with it.

My first Broadway show was "Take Me Along" with Jackie Gleason.

My first drama was the Boston try out of "Silent Night, Lonely Night" with Henry Fonda and Barbara Bel Geddes  tickets were under 5 dollars

[handiacefailure]

Patti posted she tested positive for covid and can't perform for ten days.   Glad I had my tickets to see it again last weekend instead of this coming weekend when my friend wanted to go.

She didn't get a standing ovation after Ladies who Lunch last Saturday.  

[bostonman]

I've rarely seen a standing O mid-performance in any show. I wonder if some people are taking Lupone too literally when she ends the song with "everybody rise...rise...rise..." etc, lol. 

And yes, standing O's are way too routine nowadays. But I will also say that the cliche of "the audience leapt to its feet" is never the case. In my experience, standing O's always start with a few people, and it gradually catches on - and for some people it's about standing only because they no longer can see in front of them, and/or they don't want to appear to be a party pooper when everyone else around them is standing. 

And invariably, there are some people who stand primarily because they want to be noticed. Much like the idiots who can't even wait for the last note of an aria in an opera to start yelling "bravo" - it's a part of an ego trip to be the first one to get there. Even if a "bravo" or a standing O are not really warranted. 

Edited March 1, 2022 by bostonman

[mike carey]

Moderator's note: This thread is about Company. Let's not have it go down the rabbit warren of a general discussion about standing ovations. It's fine to comment about whether this performance deserves one, but if you want to have a broader discussion, start a new thread on Standing Ovations.

[skynyc]

I've now seen this production of Company four times. I had tickets for St. Patricks Day 2020, and obviously missed. These tickets were moved to April of this year, but I didn't want to wait until April when performances started in December, so I got it on TDF and enjoyed it. A friend came in over Christmas and really wanted to see it, so I went again with him...again on TDF. And in February when Patti LuPone was out, I went back to see Jennifer Simard play Joanne, which was very different and very enjoyable. Finally saw on my original tickets at a Saturday matinee and show was in best shape of all. Katrina Lenk sang the hell out of it, her best Being Alive to date for me, and Matt Doyle's breakdown during Not Getting Married Today was just heartbreaking. Claybourne Elder's dumb blond flight attendant is riotous, and his ripped torso in Barcelona is a treat to see. The moving of the COMPANY letters was such a clever directorial device, whomever the standbys in this show have to really know what they're doing. Someone above mentioned that Patti will be up against Sutton for the Tony, but I suspect the producers of Company will try to get Patti in the Featured category so as to not compete against Katrina. Tony nominations are another topic. LOL. I don't LOVE this show, but I do love this cast. 

[+ JEC]

Saw Company last weekend and it was brilliant.  First time seeing Lupone and she's still got it!

Funny sidebar, during the intermission, 2 theatre staff came down and spoke to a man sitting behind us (they had flashlights and walkie-talkies, so official 😲).   They said "the cast are telling us you are not wearing your mask over your nose, and if Miss Lupone sees you she will stop the show."  It was humorous, her reputation lives on!

[bostonman]

They really shouldn’t say things like that. I do believe that some people would then continue to leave off their mask IN ORDER TO see if Lupone would  actually stop the show. 

[leeper]

I saw "Company" in New York a couple of weeks ago and really enjoyed it.  I did feel the gender change of Bobby to Bobbie totally worked.  I did much prefer Katrina Lenk's performance  in "The Band's Visit" over her performance in this show, but I didn't dislike her at all   And yes, Claybourne Elder is a treat!

[handiacefailure]

Patti was nominated for a Tony for supporting actress.   

I can't believe Katrina Lenk didn't get nominated for best actress.   With the exception of Sutton Foster, none of the nominees were that great.

[EZEtoGRU]

Patti LuPone chastised a theatregoer for not wearing a mask properly during a Tuesday Q&A panel in the theatre.  Good for her!  Proper masking is the rule.  Whether you agree with the rule or not is irrelevant.  If you want to go to the theatre in NYC,  you need to mask-up properly.  Full stop.  

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/patti-lupone-claps-back-broadway-044146910.html

[handiacefailure]

1 hour ago, EZEtoGRU said:

Patti LuPone chastised a theatregoer for not wearing a mask properly during a Tuesday Q&A panel in the theatre.  Good for her!  Proper masking is the rule.  Whether you agree with the rule or not is irrelevant.  If you want to go to the theatre in NYC,  you need to mask-up properly.  Full stop.  

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/patti-lupone-claps-back-broadway-044146910.html

I'm surprised she didn't stop the show and require them to be thrown out like she did when someone was taking pics during Gypsy.   In fact she kept saying "who do you think you are" when that incident happened.   

 

Edited May 13, 2022 by handiacefailure

[bostonman]

IMO, Patti needs to learn when to keep her mouth shut. This wasn't her cross to bear (she loves to take these things on herself when she really shouldn't), and I think she only made things worse by being so brash and making it a very personal thing. (I understand the talkback was stopped after this - which might not have happened otherwise. But who was in the mood after that????)

I think, despite the testing protocols for the cast (which honestly haven't prevented them from getting infected even so), it would be a good idea for actors to be masked when doing these post-show talkbacks. It would go more with the intimate, equitable feel of the discussion (very different from the show itself), and in this case, it would have given the audience member even less of a fight. (To be fair, Patti may have been thinking on similar lines when she asked if she herself should put on a mask.) 

Tensions and tempers run high with all of this, and I know a lot of people support what Patti did. I do too, on basic principle, but I do wish she would find a nicer way to do it. She might have caught the fly with honey. She didn't even try. She just totally lost control, like Eva Peron on a bad day. IMO it kinda ruins the thrill of her climactic "Rise...rise...rise...rise...rise...RISE!!!" when all everyone will now remember going out of the performance is that she yelled "put on your fucking mask!"

Edited May 13, 2022 by bostonman

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

On 5/10/2022 at 10:10 PM, handiacefailure said:

I can't believe Katrina Lenk didn't get nominated for best actress.   With the exception of Sutton Foster, none of the nominees were that great.

Lenk didn't get nominated because she was woefully miscast and it showed.

[leeper]

1 hour ago, BenjaminNicholas said:

Lenk didn't get nominated because she was woefully miscast and it showed.

I agree.  I loved Lenk in "A Band's Visit", she was perfect.  But I didn't love her in "Company" even though it was enjoyable.

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

3 hours ago, leeper said:

I agree.  I loved Lenk in "A Band's Visit", she was perfect.  But I didn't love her in "Company" even though it was enjoyable.

She's incredibly talented and a beautiful woman to boot, but she's not right in this role.

Her vocals aren't what they needed to be.

[bostonman]

1 minute ago, BenjaminNicholas said:

She's incredibly talented and a beautiful woman to boot, but she's not right in this role.

Her vocals aren't what they needed to be.

Her songs in "The Band's Visit" had a conversational quality that a number of Sondheim roles do also have - but not Bobby (Bobbie), who indeed really has to let it go and sing in a much more conventional "leading role" way. But I'd be intrigued to see Lenk play a role like Desiree, or Fosca. I think she'd be great in roles like that. 

[+ sam.fitzpatrick]

I'm pulling for Jennifer Simard to get the Featured Actress - Musical win.  I'm heard her in a couple of other venues and always enjoyed her performances.